Allowed to Suffer

Why are we allowed to suffer?

John 11:1-7

Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was the Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. So the sisters sent word to Him, saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.” But when Jesus heard this, He said, “This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it.” Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when He heard that he was sick, He then stayed two days longer in the place where He was.

After Jesus heard that Lazarus was sick He intentionally stayed where He was for two more days during which time Lazarus died. He could have gone back sooner and healed Lazarus but He chose not to.

Jesus could also have spared Mary and Martha the pain and sorrow of watching Lazarus, their brother, suffer and die but He chose not to.

It is also clear that Jesus loved Lazarus, Mary and Martha very much…

John 11:3, 5, 36

So the sisters sent word to Him, saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.”

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.

So the Jews were saying, “See how He loved him!” 

In fact Jesus loved them so much that He Himself was deeply moved in spirit and He even wept when He saw Mary and the people weeping…

John 11:33-35

When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled, and said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus wept.

So why would Jesus allow those He loved so deeply to go through such pain and suffering when He could have just come back and healed Lazarus?

John 11:4, 40, 15, 45

But when Jesus heard this, He said, “This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it.”

Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” 

“and I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, so that you may believe; but let us go to him.”

Therefore many of the Jews who came to Mary, and saw what He had done, believed in Him.

The reason Jesus allowed Lazarus and his sisters to suffer was for the glory of God.

The reason Jesus allowed Lazarus and his sisters to suffer was so that we may believe.

There is a third reason why we are allowed to suffer and that is so we may share in Jesus’ suffering. By sharing in Jesus’ suffering we can identify with Him and be drawn closer to Him. When we weep Jesus weeps with us.

So why are we allowed to suffer?

We are allowed to suffer so that God may be glorified.

We are allowed to suffer so that we may believe.

We are allowed to suffer so that we may share in Jesus’ suffering.

So…

Has your suffering brought glory to God?

Do you believe?

Have you shared in Jesus’ suffering?